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Team Esbjerg turn on the heat in Ljubljana to punish Krim in Champions League

Team Esbjerg's Henny Reistad tries to stop Krim's Eleonora Stankovic
Team Esbjerg's Henny Reistad tries to stop Krim's Eleonora Stankovic Credit: Nik Moder // Moder Photo Agency / Moder Media Agency / Profimedia

The Team Esbjerg women's handball team lived up to their status as clear favorites when they visited RK Krim, from the Slovenian capital of Ljubljana, on Saturday. In the third round of the Champions League, the West Jutland side secured a convincing 37–31 victory over the Slovenians, who are coached by Dane Rasmus Rygaard Poulsen.

In the fourth minute, Krim pulled ahead at 2.1, but it was their only lead throughout the match. In a high-scoring first half, Esbjerg were more efficient in attack thanks to strong individual performances of Henny Reistad and Live Rushfeldt Deila.

The Norwegian duo combined for 14 goals before the interval, helping the Danish team to create a four-goal cushion after 30 minutes.

Krim's Danish coach Rasmus Poulsen called for two timeouts in the first 11 minutes after the break, as Esbjerg, who started the second half scoring five consecutive goals, later increased their lead to double digits, 29-19.

A bit later, the unstoppable Reistad further extended it to 12 goals (31-19) before the visitors somewhat slowed down in the last quarter of the match.